Joseph Regnault alias Jules Regnault (1797–1863), french professor of mathematics, engineer of "Ville de Paris" under the Second Empire, director of "Annales des Conducteurs des Ponts&Chaussées" and "Annales des Chemins vicinaux", author of manuals for the teachers, and in 1863 "Calcul des Chances et Philosophie de la Bourse", Chance Calculus and the Philosophy of the Stock Exchange, the first random walk theory, before Louis Bachelier (1870–1946).
- Joseph Regnault alias Jules Regnault (born in 1797 at Villers-the-Mountain - died in 1863 at Paris), of its name of Jean Joseph Nicolas Regnault (registry office), is a scientist economist, French professor of mathematics and driver of the Bridges & Roadways of the Town of Paris which published in 1863 “Calculation of the Chances and Philosophy of the Stock Exchange”, Mallet-Bachelier Publishing.
It has its article in Large universal Dictionary of the XIXe century of Pierre Larousse. Cf on Gallica *volume 13 page 862.
- Franck Jovanovic believes that it is about an error but he does not bring any valid proof to his thesis.
I summarized in some lines the arguments essential of the attribution of the text signed Jules Regnault in Joseph Regnault. The reasons which make me exclude Jules Regnault as author from the “Calculation of the Chances…” are numerous and relevant, I will try to recall some of them :
- 1 Philosophical Reasons : Jules Regnault is atheistic and unmarried, Joseph Regnault married three times at the church, moreover his/her brother is a canon and I know sufficiently the descendants of this phratry to know with what a not it is pious! However the text published in 1863 could not be regarded as the work of an atheist, it is enough to be impregnated some to be persuaded of it.
- 2 Material Reasons : the house Mallet-Graduate become in January 1864 Gauthier-Villars house, is a scientific publisher which does not practise the account of author and who does not have a collection devoted to the financial questions, only an author introduces already long date into the house as Joseph Regnault could be published there, a young man like Jules Regnault, without relations in the academic world and which more is without the penny at that time, could not there have published a text of its vintage. Even Willy the husband of Colette and the son of the Gauthier-Villars founder published forever in his father !
- 3 Reasons morals : Joseph Regnault did not want to compromise his situation by publishing a work of controversy on a subject O how much sensitive that the practices of the Stock Exchange with criticisms on the French policy gouvernemetale, as a civil servant of the Town of Paris, that was impossible for him.
- 4 Intellectual Reasons : one knows no text signed of the feather of Jules Regnault, neither front, nor after 1863, to believe that this one results from a spontaneous generation ! All those which made original work in the scientific field cannot imagine that somebody is seized by a sudden frenzy which makes him write 220 pages marked with the corner of the genius at the dawn of about thirty and live thirty more years without never touching its inkpot again !
- 5 Practical Reasons : Joseph Regnault was a professor of mathematics and director of Annals of the Drivers of the P&C, his superiors rented his capacities and his knowledge. One any diploma with Jules Regnault, where would it does not know have been to fish a sudden economic and mathematical culture of foreground ?
I could still align many reasons and in particular underline one of principal : I do not see how the editors of the time in particular the writers of Large Larousse and the Lorenz catalogue could have been mistaken on such a crucial point in attribution in a text, they was contemporary of Joseph Regnault and could directly address to his editor to check the material facts.
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